Robb Kulin, a 2017 astronaut applicant for NASA, is resigning Friday for “personal reasons,” acceptable the aboriginal applicant to do so in 50 years, NASA admiral accepted Monday.

Kulin, a 35-year-old Alaska native, appear to NASA’s Johnson Amplitude Centermost in Houston for his two-year astronaut training in August 2017. He was one of about 18,300 applicants — a almanac cardinal for the amplitude bureau — allusive for the 12 spots in the 2017 astronaut class.

The 2017 chic appliance was the third he had submitted to NASA, according to the Anchorage Daily News.

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“It’s a continued process,” Kulin told The Verge aftermost year. “One of the big objectives that the aggregation is activity for actuality at NASA is they’re aggravating to see, ‘Hey if I got ashore with this guy on Amplitude Station, is that absolutely article I’d enjoy?’ “

Kulin beneath to animadversion Monday. Brandi Dean, a Houston centermost spokeswoman, said the amplitude bureau will not be replacing Kulin, abrogation aloof 11 associates — six men and bristles women — in the 2017 class. His abandonment is able Aug. 31, she added, authoritative Kulin the aboriginal astronaut applicant aback 1968 to abandon afore condoning for spaceflight.

That year, two astronauts from the 1967 chic resigned: Brian O’Leary and John Llewellyn. O’Leary accommodated in April 1968 due to the abridgement of spaceflight affairs and Llewellyn accommodated a few months later, in August 1968, afterwards declining to accomplish advance aerodynamics jets. Both O’Leary and Llewellyn accept died, in 2011 and 2013, respectively.

Prior to acceptable an astronaut applicant aftermost year, Kulin formed for SpaceX, area he primarily formed on the Falcon 9 rocket, for about six years.

Kulin’s dream of acceptable an astronaut didn’t alpha as a baby adolescent like so abounding rocket men afore him. In fact, he didn’t set his architect on the stars until he was a automated engineering undergraduate at the University of Denver, area he advised the 2003 Amplitude Shuttle Columbia disaster, the Anchorage bi-weekly reported.

“Maybe you could say I’m not actual smart, because what gave me the amplitude bug was absolutely accomplishing a activity on the Columbia adversity aback in apprentice — attractive at the access of the ysis and some of the allegation there,” Kulin told The Verge. “And I assumption I’d never absolutely anticipation abundant about amplitude until that point. That affectionate of let me arch out and anticipate added about amplitude and NASA in general.”

Kulin accustomed his bachelor’s amount in 2004 and again spent a year in Italy as a Fulbright Fellow. While advancing his doctorate in engineering at University of California-San Diego — which he accustomed in 2010 — Kulin took assorted three-month leaves to go to Antarctica, area he accomplished for ice cores that advice scientists accept the history of the planet’s climate.

Those excursions — and abounding added of his career decisions — were fabricated with an eye against donning the white clothing and rocketing into space, his Ph.D. advising at UC-San Diego, Kenneth Vecchio said in June 2017, anon afterwards the applicant announcements were made.

“Robb has consistently capital to be an astronaut, and the excursions to Antarctica were allotment of his claimed alertness for activity into space,” Vecchio additionally said. “He knew again what it would booty to body a resume to be advised for the amplitude program, and about every accommodation he has fabricated in his career was with an eye against actuality called for the astronaut program, including his admiration to assignment at SpaceX.”

Kulin additionally is a clandestine pilot, scuba diver and has formed as a bartering fisherman in Alaska. In interviews afterward the 2017 applicant announcement, Kulin said its important for bodies to abide to yze — abnormally back it comes to space.

Exploration “continually pushes altruism to learn, acclimate and advance — and with our added angle on the airiness of planet Earth, it is important we alpha blame beyond,” he told the University of Denver Magazine in July 2017. “I ample that alike if I never fly in space, I would like to be allotment of authoritative amplitude ysis possible.”

Alex Stuckey covers NASA and the ambiance for the Houston Chronicle. You can ability her at [email protected] or twitter.com/alexdstuckey.

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